Flying machine



J. DUBlNA FLYING MACHINE Feb. 11, 1930.

Filed Feb. 15.. 1926' 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 lllllllllslllll/ )u Feb. 11, 1930. J. DUBINA FLYING MACHINE Filed Feb. 15. 192e 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 m d@ KM J. DUBINA FLYING MACHINE Feb. 11, 1930.

FiledFeb 15. 192e 4 sheets-sheet 3 Feb. 11, 1930. 1 DUBINA 1,746,343

FLYING MACHINE Filed Feb. l5. 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 `Lic Patented Feb. 11, 1930 JOI-IN DUIBINA, F CICERO, ILLINOIS i FLYING MACHINE Application filed February 15, 1926. Serial No. 88,3627.

. is to provide improved apparatus of the kind described which may be quickly and easily adjusted to permit manual control thereof.

Une form of the invention is embodied in an aeroplane having elevators and ailerons 2o which are operatively connected to fans or propellers having blades normally disposed in planes parallel tc the direction in which the aeroplane is proceeding, the blades being controlled by weights adapted to revolve them at proper times into positions wherein theyy present inclined faces to the air pressure caused when the machine is in motion. This causes the wind pressure to drive the fans or propellers, which, in turn, manipulate the s@ elevators and ailerons through cables or the like in such manner that the aeroplane is held to a substantially straight course.v

Many other objects and advantages of the construction herein shown and described will be obvious to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein given.

i To this end my invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of parts herein shown and described, Vand more particularly pointed out"` in the claims.

In the drawings, wherein like reference characters indicate like. or corresponding parts: Y

Fig. lis a plan view of an aeroplane embodying the invention; j

Fig. 2 is a front elevation ofthe improved aeroplane;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of part of the mechanism adapted to control the ailerons of the improved aeroplane;

Fig. l is an elevation of part of the mechanisin adapted to control the elevators of the improved aeroplane;

Fig 5 is a diagram showing the mechanism whereby the apparatus shown in Figs. 3 and 'l isconnected to the ailerons and elevators;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the improved aeroplane;

Fig. 7 is an elevation of the joy stick;

Fig. S is a section taken on lineVS-S of Fig. 7; 7 Figi 9 is a section taken on line 9 9 of Fig.

Fig. l0 is a section taken on line lO-lO of Fig. 3. v

Referring to the drawings, I have shown a preferred form of the invention embodied .in an aeroplane of the biplane type comprissustaining planes .i6 and 17, respectively, are mounted, the aeroplane being providedwith a propeller 18 which is driven by an internal combustion engine (not shown). Hinged to the upper sustaining plane 16 are ailerons 19 and 20, and hinged to the rear end of the fuselage l5 are elevators 22 and 23 whichare spaced to accommodatea rudder 24.

Means comprising a joy stick 25 is preferably pro-vided for controlling the ailerons 19 and 2O and the elevators 22 and 23, the rudder beingl controlled by any suitable means (not shown). As best shown in Figs. 7 and 8, the joy stick 25 is mounted for universal movement in the fuselage 15, the joy stick being provided with projecting pins 27 pivoted in a member 23 which has pins 29 pivoted in brackets 30 rigidly secured to the fuselage. The elevators 22 and 23 are operatively connected to the joy stick 25 by cables 32 and 33, or the equivalent. One end of the cable 32 is connected to the joy stick 25 at a point below the member 28 and has its other end connected to a post 35 projecting forwardly from the elevators 22 and 23 and 4constrained to move therewith. It will be noted that the cable 32 is trained over a sheave 37 journaled in the rear end of the fuselage, a sheave 38 being provided for the cable 33 of which one end is secured to the post 35 ing a fuselage l5 upon which upper and lower and the other end is secured to the joy stick at a point above the member 28. Obviously, the joy stick 25 may be manipulated manually to raise or lower the rear end of the elevators 22 and 23 so that the aeroplane ma be caused to fall or rise, respectively.

he ailerons 19 and 20 are operatively connected to the joy stick by cables, or thc equivalent, the aileron 19 being' connected to the joy stick by cables and 41 and the aileron 20 being connected to the joy stick by cables 43 and 44. It will be noted. that the cables 40, 41, 43 and 44 are trained over sheaves 45, 46, 47 and 48, respectively, which are rotatably mounted in brackets fixed to the upper sustaining plane 16. As diagrammatically shown in Fig. 5, one end of the cable 40 is connected to one end of a post 50 constrained to move with the aileron 19, the other end oit t-he post being connected to one end of the cable 41. The remaining ends ot' the cables 40 and 41 are secured to the joy stick above and below, respectively, the member 28. One end of the cable 43 is secured to the joy stick at a point below the member 28 and the other end thereof is connected to one end of a post 52 constrained to move with the aileron 20, the other end of the post 52 being connected to one end of the cable which, in turn, has its other end connected tothe joy stick 25 at a point above the member 28. It will be readily understood that the joy stick 25 may be moved to manipulate the ailerons 19 and 20 in such manner that the aeroplane will be ke t on even keel.

'he means for automatically controlling the elevators 22 and 23 comprises a propeller or fan 55 mounted upon the left hand end (Figs. 1 and 2) of the lower sustaining plane 17. Referring to Fig. 4, it 'will be noted that the fan 55 comprises a plurality ot vanes or blades 57 pivoted upon pins 58 extending radially from a head 59 mounted upon the forward end of a shaft 60 rotatably ournaled in a bracket 62 which is rigidly secured to the lower sustaining plane 17. Splined upon the sha-ft 60 is a hollow block 64 in the faces oiwhich'diagonal slots 65 are formed to receive pins 66 formed upon the ends of arms 67 projecting from the blades 57, the construction being such that if the block G4 is moved toward or away from the head 59, the blades 57 will be angularly displaced around the axes of the pins 58. The direction of this displacement depends `upon the direction in whlch the block 64 is moved. Normally, the blades 57 lie in planes parallel to the direction in which the aeroplane is proceeding.

Rotatably journaled upon a hub 69 formed integral with the block 64 is a collar 70 which is connected by a link 72 to a lever'7 3 pivoted intermediate its ends in the bracket 62. The lower end of the lever 73 terminates in a weight 74 which, when the aeroplane is proceeding in a horizontal direction, tends to hold the block 64 in a position wherein it will, in turn, hold the blades 57 in planes parallel to the direction in which the areoplane is proceeding. It is readily understood that when the nose o'f the aeroplane drops or rises the weight 74 will gravitatc into a position wherein it will cause the block to hold the blades 57 in planes disposed at angles to the direction of travel.

Secured to the shaft 60 is a pinion 75 meshing with a gear 76 fixed to a shaft 77 journaled in the bracket 62, the shai't 77 carrying a drum 78 around and through which a cable 80 is secured in such manner that it the drum is rotated one end of the cable will be unwound from the drum and t-he other end will be wound thereupon. As best illustrated in Fig. 5, the cable 80 is trained over sheaves 82 and 83 mounted in the fuselage 15, and, as best illustrated in 'Fig'. 7 one end of the cable is secured to one end of a rack 85 slidably journaled in the joy stick 25. Secured to the other end of the rack 85 is one end of a cable 87, the cable 87 being trained over a pulley 88 and having` its other end 'secured to one end of a rod 89 slidably journaled in the lower end of the joy stick. The other end of the rod 89 is secured to the other end of the cable 80. Slidably journaled in a bracket 91 mounted upon the joy stick 25 is a dog 92 which is yieldingly held in engagement with the teeth of the rack 85 by a compression spring 94 interposed between the dog and an eye 95 projecting from the joy stick. A rod 97 connects the dog 92 with a'lever 100 pivoted to the joy stick by a pin 101. The arrangement is such that when the lever 100 is displaced against the action of the spring 94 the dog 92 is withdrawn from engagement with the rack 85. The purpose of this construction will presently appear.

The means for automatically controlling the ailerons 19 and 20 preferably comprises a propeller or fan 105 mounted upon the righthand .end (Figs. 1 and 2) of the lower sustaining plane 17, the fan being constructed of a plurality of vanes or blades 107 which resemble the aforementioned blades 57 and are pivot-ed upon pins 108 projecting from a head 109 fixed to a shaft 110. The pins 108 are radially disposed with respect to the shaft 110 and each blade 107 is provided with an arm 112 which terminates in a pin 113 adapted to ride in a diagonal slot 114 formed in block 115, the block 115 being splined upon the shaft 110, and being provided with a hub 117 upon which a collar 118 is rotatably journaled and held against longitudinal displacement relative to the block. A link 119 connects the collar 118 with an arm 120 of a bell crank lever 121 which also comprises an arm 122 pivotally connected to one end of a lever 124. The lever 124 is pivoted intermediate its ends upon a bracket 125 rigidly secured to the lower sustaining plane 17 and adapted to rotatably journal the shaft 110. It will be noted `that the lower end ofthe lever 124 is provided with a weight 127 and thatthe lever 124 is adapted to oscillate in the plane eXtending transversely of the aeroplane as distin` guishedfrom the lever 73 which is adapted to oscillate in a plane extending longitudinally of the aeroplane. Secured to the shaft 110 is a pinion 128 which meshes with a gear 129 fixed to a shaft 130, the shaft 130 being rotatably journaled in the bracket 125 and having a drum 131 fixed thereto. Wound around the drum 131 and extending therethrough is a cable 133 arranged in such manner upon the drum that, when the drum is rotated, one end of the cable will be unwound therefrom and the other end of the cable will be wound thereupon. i

Referring now to Fig. 7, one end of the cable 133 is attached to one end of a rack 135 slidably journaled in the joy stick, the other end of the rack being secured to one end of a cable 137 trained over a sheave 139 mounted in the fuselage 15, the other end of the cable 137 is fixed to one end of a rod 140 slidably journaled in the joy stick, the other end of the rod 140 being secured to the other end of the cable 133. Slidably mounted in a bracket 145 mounted upon the Joy stick is a dog 146 which is yieldingly held in engagement with the teeth of the rack by a compression spring 147 wound around a rod 148 which connects the dog to a lever 150 pivoted to the joy stick. The dog may be withdrawn from the rack 135 by displacing the lever 150 against the action of the spring 147. Y

The operation of the above described apparatus is substantially as follows: It will be readily understood that if the levers 100 and 150 are displaced against the actions of the springs 94 and 147, respectively, by the operator when he grasps the joy stick, the joy stick may be manipulated to control the ailerons 19 and 2O and the elevators 22 and 23. The dogs 92 and 146 will then be out of engagement with the racks 85 and 135, respectively, and the fans 55 and 105 may rotate without causing displacement of the joy stick, as the racks 85 and 135 and the rods 89 and 140 will then slide freely therein. However, if the aviator wishes to travel in a substantially horizontal plane, the dogs 92 and 146 may be permitted to engage the teeth of the `racks 85 and 135, respectively. Now, then if the nose of the aeroplane tends to rise or fall the weight 74 will angularly displace the lever 73 to move the blades 57 into planes disposed at angles to the direction in which the aeroplane is traveling. If the nose of the aeroplane tends to rise, the blades 57 will l be so disposed that the fan 55 will be rotated by the wind pressure in a direction which will..

cause the cable 80 to be wound and unwound from the drum 78 in such manner that the rear endsof the elevators 22 and 23will be depressed whereupon the aeroplane will resume its horizontal course. The air pressure against the displaced elevators 22 and 23 will causethem to assume their normal positions andV they, in turn, will wind and unwind the cable 80 upon and from the drum 78 to restore normal conditions. From the foregoing it is obvious that if the nose of the aeroplane tends to dip, the blades 57 will be moved into positions which will cause the fan 55 to rotate in suchmanner that the cable 8O `will raise the rear ends of the elevators 22 and 23 and cause the aeroplane to resume its horizontal course.

If, during the travel of the machine, it

`tends to side-slip or to tilt around its longitudinal axis, the weight 127 will-bring the blades 107 in positions wherein the fan 105 will be rotated in the proper direction to have the cable 133 manipulate the ailerons 19 and 20 in such manner that the machine will be restored to an even keel. After the machine has been restored to an even keel the wind pressure against the ailerons will restore them to their normal positions and they, in turn, will wind and unwind the cable 133 on and from the drum 131 to restore normal conditions in the apparatus upon the bracket 135.

While I have disclosed my invention in connection with an aeroplane of conventional construction, it is obvious that it may be embodied in trailers adapted to be drawn through the air by aeroplanes having motive What I claim as new and `desire to secure n by Letters Patent is: i

1. In a device of the class described including movable parts for controlling `direction of movement of the device, a rotatably mounted shaft carried by said device, a block carried movement to the fan blades to move them out of their normal positions, and means forming operative connection between the shaft and movable parts whereby to impart movement tothe latter upon movement of the blades from their normal positions.

2. In a device of the class described including movable parts for controlling the direc- 5 tion of the movement of the device, a rotatably mounted shaft carried by the device and having al pinion at one end and a movable block having diagonal slots at the other end,

fan blades carried by the shaft and normally m lying in a plane parallel With the direction in which the device is travelling, arms carried by the blades and having engagement with the slots; a gear, said gear forming operative connection between the pinion and the 1;, movable parts, and means controlled by gravity for imparting movement to the fan blades to move them out of their normal position when the device is moved from its course.

3. In a device of the class described includ- 20 ing movable parts for controlling the direction of the movement of the device, a rotatably mounted shaft carried by the device and having a pinion at one end and a movable block having diagonal slots at the other end,

a5 fan blades carried by the shaft and normally lying in a plane parallel with the direction in which the device is travelling, arms carried by the blades and having engagement with the slots; a gear, a drum secured to the an gear, said gear forming operative connection with the said pinion, means connecting the drum and movable parts, and means controlled by gravity for imparting movement to the fan blades to move them out of their norss mal position when the device is moved from its course.

4. In a device of the kind described a body provided with aerofoils, a rudder, aileronsv and elevators, and in combination a structure rm; as described in claim 3 disposed adjacent the end of an aerofoil and having its gravity controllable means movable in a plane relative the lateral axis of the device to moveQ the ailerons, and another structure as described disposed adjacent the other end of the aerofoil having its gravity controllable means movable in a plane relative the longitudinal axis of the body whereby the device When travelling Will be automatically stabilized if mi moved from its norma-l, lateral or longitudinal axis.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto signed my name.

JOHN DUBINA. 

